Palma plans major shift in public transport: 57 e-buses and new depot in Son Rossinyol

More buses, fewer emissions — but is it enough?

On a windy morning at Plaça d'Espanya you increasingly hear the quiet hum of an e-bus instead of the coarse rumble of old diesels. The city administration is now stepping up: 57 more electric buses are planned for 2026, along with a new operations center in the Son Rossinyol industrial area. The figures in the budget draft look large — but the central question remains: will these investments really transform urban transport sustainably, or will it remain a symbolic catch-up?

What exactly is planned

The scale of the numbers is clear: more than €131 million is earmarked for 2026, a sum that raises the budget by almost 80% compared with the previous year. The package appears to be financed from a mix of EU funds, tourism tax revenues and municipal resources. EMT's goal is ambitious: to operate more than half of the fleet electrically in the long term. On Palma's main corridors, such as Avenida Argentina and Passeig Mallorca, the new vehicles should be seen more frequently.

Foreign technology, familiar problems

For passengers' everyday life this initially sounds positive: less noise, better air — and a unified ticket for all of Mallorca that connects rail, bus and regional services. But supply chains, long procurement lead times and the expansion of charging infrastructure are not footnotes: they determine how quickly the quieter hum actually takes over. A driver with 20 years of EMT experience at the bus station dryly told me: "The e-buses are nicer, but the technology poses new challenges for us." That is precisely the Achilles' heel of such programs: people, infrastructure and technology must scale up at the same time.

Son Rossinyol depot: opportunity or stumbling block?

The planned depot in Son Rossinyol is more than a vehicle shed. It is to include workshops, charging solutions and modern energy management so buses can be charged at night without burdening the neighborhood with extra noise. That sounds sensible; in practice it is more complex: it is about grid stability, possible peak loads, site acceptance in industrial areas and whether local power networks can handle the additional loads. Without clear agreements with energy suppliers and detailed timelines, delays and cost increases are likely.

What public debate often misses

Public debate often lacks technical depth: what charging capacities are planned? Will fast charging be allowed during the day so buses can quickly return to service? Are there plans for Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) or local battery buffers to absorb peaks? Workforce training is another often overlooked factor: shift schedules, new maintenance protocols and safety regulations change daily work routines.

Concrete opportunities and solutions

The good news: many risks are manageable. Practical, locally suitable proposals Mallorca should consider include:

- Staggered procurement: Small batch deliveries instead of one large order reduce delivery risks and allow technical adjustments after first experiences.

- Cooperation with the grid operator: Early coordination minimizes bottlenecks. Combinations of night charging, buffer storage and time-variable tariffs can reduce costs and peak loads.

- Regional training programs: Certified courses for drivers and technicians secure local skilled workers — reducing external dependencies and creating jobs on the island.

- Pilot routes and visible successes: Showing rapid conversions on a few lines wins broad acceptance — the calm at Plaça d'Espanya is the best argument.

The practical conclusion

If everything goes according to plan, 2026 will mark a visible phase of transition. For the city this means large investments and organizational work; for passengers, hopefully cleaner air and less noise. Whether the plan pays off in the end depends on funding, good planning and how quickly charging infrastructure and buses become available. And on how well administration, EMT, energy providers and residents pull together.

If you walk past the bus station this week, you notice the change first in the quiet: it hums instead of rumbles. For that hum to remain and not become an expensive anecdote, Palma now needs clear schedules, technical solutions and honest communication.